Boone County’s clerk is projecting a 65 percent voter turnout for the November 8 general election. While that number seems high to Comobuz.com publisher Mike Murphy, he believes no-excuse absentee voting is causing some of the increased interest. Mr. Murphy joined host Fred Parry in-studio for the hour Saturday morning on 939 the Eagle’s “CEO Round Table,” telling listeners that Republicans benefit from a higher voter turnout in Boone County. Murphy also breaks down numerous races, including the high-profile presiding commissioner race between Democrat Kip Kendrick and Republican Connie Leipard:
Luis Rivera touts Columbia’s Ernie’s Cafe on national television segment
Columbia’s popular Ernie’s Café and Steakhouse has been featured on “America’s Best Restaurant.” Ernie’s is Columbia’s oldest classic diner.
The new segment debuted Thursday evening and showed numerous menu items, including waffles, French toast, Boone County ham and bacon.
The television production crew appeared to have placed their cameras in the front of the restaurant, and a booth was set up for the show’s popular host, Luis Rivera, to interview Ernie’s owner Tom Spurling on-camera. Mr. Sprurling notes Ernie’s 88th anniversary is coming up, and he thanked Rivera for traveling to Columbia for the segment.
The segment runs about 16 minutes and has been posted on Youtube. You can see it here.
Missouri lawmakers will tackle Wooldridge recovery in January, Rowden says
The state Senate Majority Leader describes Saturday’s massive fire in mid-Missouri’s Wooldridge as gut-wrenching and heartbreaking.
The village of Wooldridge in eastern Cooper County is located in the district of powerful Senate Majority Leader Caleb Rowden (R-Columbia). Rowden toured the fire damage with the governor this week.
“You know people who have worked hard to get to the point that they have gotten in life. And for it to just be taken away in just a few moments, in moments that they don’t have any control over. It’s bad in any situation, it certainly hits a little closer to home when it’s folks that you know and represent,” Rowden told a 939 the Eagle reporter this week, during a tour of the devastated town.
The blaze destroyed at least 23 structures in Wooldridge, damaging at least 3,000 acres of land in the county. There were no fatalities nor serious injuries, a point Governor Mike Parson and Rowden have emphasized.
Leader Rowden indicates the Wooldridge recovery will be an issue that state lawmakers will address when they return to Jefferson City in January.
“We don’t know exactly what the recovery is going to look like. There is going to be multiple pieces of it, there’s going to be multiple agencies both at the executive level and at the legislative level. So I think we’ve got to figure out what the right kind of recovery looks like, and then figure out a way to resource that path,” Rowden tells 939 the Eagle.
He emphasizes that Wooldridge residents are resilient.
Governor Parson, U.S. Rep. Vicky Hartzler (R-Harrisonville), Senator Rowden and State Rep. Tim Taylor (R-Speed) spoke to impacted residents, townspeople, farmers and to the American Red Cross during this week’s tour. Smoke permeated the air everywhere, and you could see smoke still rising from some of the burned-out vehicles.
UPDATE: Post indicating threat to Mexico Public Schools came from a minor
A one-sentence threat posted on Snapchat and possibly other social media prompted Mexico Public Schools to cancel all classes for today. The school district has issued an updated statement, saying they’ve identified the person who made the social media threat toward the Mexico high and middle schools.
“When school resumes on Tuesday, November 1, we are confident that this matter has been dealt with and out students and staff can return to school knowing that,” The district wrote this morning, in an e-mail to Mexico families.
Classes were already canceled for Monday due to a district professional development day.
Former 939 the Eagle reporter Mathew Pilger, who’s now the managing editor of the “Mexico Ledger” newspaper, quotes Mexico Public Safety chief Susan Rockett as saying the post was allegedly made by a minor, who will be facing school discipline. Chief Rockett confirms to the “Ledger” that one of the online threats made against the Mexico high and middle schools was one sentence: “Everyone in MHS and MMS getting shot tf up.”
Mexico Public Schools says student safety is the district’s top priority. All district classes are canceled today in Mexico Public Schools, in an effort to protect students and staff.
UPDATE: Columbia cold case suspect graduated from Rock Bridge
Bond is set at $1-million for a former Columbia man charged with the horrific 1984 rape and attempted murder of a woman who was kidnapped on Wilkes Boulevard while walking to work.
59-year-old James Wilson was captured at his North Carolina home early Thursday morning by Columba Police and North Carolina authorities. Columbia Police announced the arrest in a Thursday afternoon press conference at city hall. Columbia Police Department (CPD) assistant chief Jeremiah Hunter tells 939 the Eagle that Wilson graduated from Rock Bridge high school, and that he lived in Columbia in 1984.
The Columbia Police Department’s probable cause statement indicates Wilson and the victim did not know each other. Court documents describe them as “complete strangers.”
CPD spokeswoman Toni Messina tells reporters that Columbia Police officers worked on the case for years and pursued every available lead. Messina says the case was assigned to CPD detective Renee Wilbarger in March 2020.
“Through advancements in DNA technology, the wide range of DNA databases and the help of partner agencies, Detective Wilbarger identified James Frederick Wilson, 59, as a potential suspect,” Messina says.
Wilson is charged with forcible rape and first degree assault. Columbia Police chief Geoff Jones believes there could be additional victims. CPD has established a tip line for this investigation. Anyone with information about James Frederick Wilson and this case can call (573) 874-7400.
“But we don’t know yet how expansive his reign of terror was. We do know that people who commit these types of crimes often don’t stop with one,” Chief Jones tells reporters.
Wilson was captured early Thursday morning at his North Carolina home by Columbia Police officers and the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation (NCSBI).
Graphic court documents say the 1984 victim was abducted near Wilkes and Providence and was driven to northeast Columbia’s Wellington drive, where she was raped twice. Court documents say Wilson then used his pocket knife to slash the victim’s throat, causing major damage to her trachea and vocal cords. She suffered multiple lacerations and her injuries “required surgical repair,” according to court documents.
During Thursday’s press conference, 939 the Eagle News asked CPD assistant chief Jeremiah Hunter when Wilson lived in Columbia, and where he went to school.
“I can tell you he attended school here. After graduating high school, he had some odd jobs here as well. I believe he moved away from Columbia around 1985 (or) 1986,” Hunter says.
939 the Eagle followed-up with Mr. Hunter on Friday morning. He confirms the suspect attended Rock Bridge high school.
The victim provided detailed information to CPD detectives in 1984, describing him as a white male 18 to 19 years old, weighing 190 to 200 pounds with sandy blond hair. Court documents say the victim told detectives the suspect drove a dark green two-door muscle style car. The court documents say Columbia Police stopped James Wilson in 1985, while he was driving a green 1970 Oldsmobile Cutlass. The vehicle, which was registered to Wilson, was stopped by the CPD officer because it matched the suspect’s description in this case, according to CPD’s probable cause statement. The court documents do not indicate what happened after that, but Wilson was not arrested during the traffic stop.
Keep your radio tuned to 939 the Eagle for updated information on this case.
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